Middlesex County, NJ - County Government

Juvenile Detention Officer

Under general direction of a supervisory employee during an


assigned tour of duty, controls the general conduct and behavior


of juvenile residents, the maintenance of discipline, and


custodial, recreational, transportation, and housekeeping


functions; does other related duties as required.


FOR POSITIONS ASSIGNED TO PROVIDE MANAGEMENT


OF A HOME DETENTION PROGRAM


Under general direction of a supervisory employee responsible


for carrying out the daily operations and maintenance of an


electronic monitoring / home detention program for juveniles


as well as adult detainees on a 24/7 on-call status.


EXAMPLES OF WORK


Transports juvenile residents to various locations outside the


institution using a van/car to assist them in obtaining needed


treatments, attend court, and so forth.


Supervises and/or participates in various programs/activities


with juvenile residents to stimulate interest in and cooperation


with various social/education programs.


Provides advice to individual juvenile residents on personal


problems they encounter while in the institution such as peer


pressure, adapting to the surroundings, and so forth by


presenting a positive role model and using common sense to


relieve tension and prevent additional problems.


Keeps track of assigned juveniles under immediate charge


through periodic head counts, and records schedules, activities,


incidents, and so forth in a log book to be aware at all times of


the whereabouts of juvenile residents.


Uses appropriate techniques to calm disruptive juvenile residents


in a potentially dangerous situation and may physically restrain


them to prevent them from endangering their health/safety or


others.


Observes unusual physical appearance/behavior of juvenile


residents to uncover violations of institutional rules and


protect the health, security, safety, and welfare of juvenile


residents.


Detects unusual odors such as marijuana, cigarette smoke,


fires, or alcohol to uncover violations, and protects the security,


safety, and welfare of juveniles.


Listens for unusual sounds such as a sudden change in noise


level, calls for help, cries of fire, arguments among juvenile


residents, scraping of metal, and so forth to maintain the


security, safety, and welfare of the juvenile residents, and to


react in accord with established policies/regulations/procedures


in crisis situations.


Learns the names and recognizes juvenile residents under


immediate charge and maintains a constructive personal


relationship with them to control their general conduct/behavior


and to identify potential problems.


Patrols various locations within the institution for the purpose


of checking safety/security hazards such as fire, smoke, broken


pipes, unlocked doors, and tampered windows/locks to protect


the security/safety of juveniles and the institution.


Searches juveniles clothing/possessions, and makes periodic


room checks to detect contraband in accord with established


policies, regulations, and procedures.


Supervises, performs, and instructs juvenile residents in


housekeeping duties such as sweeping/mopping floors, making


beds, and so forth to maintain sanitary conditions in resident areas.


Ensures that juveniles maintain personal hygiene.


Listens on conversations among juvenile residents to detect


possible security problems such as planning of escapes and


so forth, and reports such information in accord with established


policies, regulations, and procedures.


Writes comprehensive, factual, incident reports and/or fills out


short forms such as head counts and safety reports to give


routine, detailed information.


Will be required to learn to utilize various types of electronic


and/or manual recording and information systems used by the


agency, office, or related units.


FOR POSITIONS ASSIGNED TO PROVIDE MANAGEMENT


OF A HOME DETENTION PROGRAM


Provide 24-hour on-call support to families and clients in


the event of emergencies and alert warnings involving


monitoring equipment.


Ensures compliance with court orders and terms of home


detention.


Completes home inspections including an interview with


family at home.


Transports the detainee to home and set-up monitoring


equipment.


Perform all home detention installations and disconnects


including all necessary set-up and termination with the


monitoring company.


Ensure that the home detention program has the proper


equipment in the office at all times and that it is in working


order.


Establishes, updates and maintains case files.


Replace transmitter or unit placed in the house when it


is not working properly.


Review billing from monitoring company for each client.


Maintains contact with contract detention facility


concerning the status of the juvenile detainees, their


progress educationally, their disciplinary issues, if any,


and their general adjustment to the detention environment.


Perform daily checks on a client's whereabouts, e.g., school,


probation appointments, employment or programs.


Serves as the liaison to the Family Court on the status of juveniles


in detention, receiving and communicating Court requirements


to the contract facility and reporting to the Court as needed


on progress or difficulties of the juveniles placed by the court


in the contract facility.


Acts as a liaison between the detention center and state and


local agencies e.g., Superior Court, Probation, Juvenile Justice


Commission, Family Case Management, substance abuse


treatment programs, school or work.


Make visits to the contract family to establish and maintain


a working relationship with the administrative, educational


and medical components of the facility. Will report on these


matters to the Warden and take the lead in working through


any issues that may need adjustment or better understanding.


Notify the Department of Corrections Transport Unit of need


to move juveniles to detention and schedule the transport.


Issue Warning Letters To Detainees Who Show Adjustment Problems.


Conduct random urinalysis tests on detainees.


May assist the Coordinator of Juvenile Detention Services


in the management of the juvenile detention population held


in another county under contract.


Writes comprehensive, factual, incident reports.


EDUCATION


Graduation from high school or vocational school or possession of


an approved high school equivalency certificate.


TRAINING


Appointees will be required to successfully complete a training


program approved by the New Jersey Police Training Commission


within the time period prescribed by law or the New Jersey Police


Training Commission.


CITIZENSHIP


Applicants must be citizens of the United States.


LICENSE


Appointees will be required to possess a driver's license


valid in New Jersey only if the operation of a vehicle, rather


than employee mobility, is necessary to perform essential


duties of the position.


KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITIES


Ability to cope with crisis situations that occur in a juvenile


detention facility.


Ability to apply knowledge and use of sound judgment in critical


situations.


Ability to empathize with juveniles from different backgrounds.


Ability to write concise, accurate reports.


Ability to utilize various types of electronic and/or manual


recording and information systems used by the agency, office,


or related units.


FOR POSITIONS ASSIGNED TO PROVIDE MANAGEMENT


OF A HOME DETENTION PROGRAM


Ability to learn to use electronic monitoring equipment.


Ability to function under difficult or stressful conditions


both in the field and before the Courts.


Ability to utilize program assessment tools to efficiently and


correctly evaluate program applicants as well as their living


situations for suitability in the Home Detention Program.


Ability to interact and communicate with various professionals


e.g., Judges, Court personnel, law enforcement, social service


Personnel, program participants, their families and so forth.


Ability to read, write, speak, understand, and communicate in


English sufficiently to perform duties of this position. American


Sign Language or Braille may also be considered as acceptable


forms of communication.


Persons with mental or physical disabilities are eligible as long


as they can perform essential functions of the job with or without


reasonable accommodation. If the accommodation cannot be


made because it would cause the employer undue hardship,


such persons may not be eligible.
  • Seniority level

    Entry level
  • Employment type

    Full-time
  • Job function

    Other, Information Technology, and Management
  • Industries

    Government Administration

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